Searing hot temperatures continue to plague fishermen on Clear Lake. That’s the bad news. The good news is the bass, crappie, bluegill and even the catfish are biting. What is really exciting is that the topwater action for bass is improving daily.

Few fishermen are around to take advantage of the red-hot bite. Even though the fishing is the best it has been in years and even with a full lake, prospects for a crowded lake aren’t materializing. On any given day the parking lots at the boat ramps are half empty. A good example was Tuesday when the parking lot near the boat ramp at the state park held only one trailer. There were only three trailers at Lakeside County Park and even the docks at the Fifth Street ramp in Lakeport held only a couple of fishermen.

I fished the lake Tuesday with Ed Smith of Gridley and we started out at Lakeside County Park. We drop-shotted a plastic worm and caught only one small bass. By then it was approaching noon and the temperature was in the mid-90s. We fished the Lucerne shoreline and observed bass chasing minnows in the weed mats about 300 yards offshore. We rigged up with a Horny Toad plastic topwater lure and on the first cast I caught a 4-pounder. In a space of two hours we caught at least a dozen nice-sized bass and had a good number of blowups, and this was during the hottest part of the day.

The Horny Toad is made by Zoom Lures and can be purchased at all the local tackle shops. It is rigged weedless using a size 4/0 hook. When the fish strikes, wait a few seconds so it can take down the lure before setting the hook. It is an exciting method of fishing and even the unskilled fisherman can do it.

Without a doubt the best times to fish have been the first hour after daylight and the last hour before dark. The good news is that weed mats are forming all around the lake and the bass are holding beneath them. Most of the bass being caught weigh less than 3 pounds but there has been an occasional 5-pounder. Any fish larger than that has been extremely rare.

Tournaments

Best Bass Tournament (BBT) is holding a tournament Saturday out of Redbud Park in Clearlake. The weigh-in starts at noon. According to the BBT website, the popular Bob’s Marine bass tournament scheduled for Sept. 14-15 on Clear Lake has been canceled. No reason was given for the cancellation.

The first Lakeport Bait and Tackle open kayak and belly boat tournament is scheduled for Aug. 25 on Clear Lake and will go out of the Skylark Motel in Lakeport. The tournament is open to all kayaks and float tubes or belly boats. Call 900-5101 for more information.

Crappie/catfish

Crappie action has been a hit-or-miss affair. Some anglers are doing well while others are struggling. Two of the better areas have been Kono Tayee and Shag Rock. A few crappie are also being caught at Lakeside County Park and off the docks at Library Park. Catfish action has been good and some huge catfish are being caught. In fact, several bass fishermen reported catching large catfish on their bass lures.

Other lakes

Indian Valley Reservoir is worth a try this weekend. The lake is in perfect condition and the bass are biting like crazy. The bass action at Lake Pillsbury is also red-hot.

Deer season

Deer hunters in Zone A are having mixed results. Larry Poff of Kelseyville processes deer and as of Monday he had received 27 bucks. Most came off private land. Poff processes wild pigs as well as elk and deer. His telephone number is 349-6800.